Month: August 2016

Depending on your location there could be one or several hospices in your community. If you live in Nevada your options are abundant and making the right choice for you and your loved one can become stressful. Hospice is compassionate care focused on comfort and quality of life. It’s care is unique to each individual. Understanding hospice prepares patients and loved ones for what is ahead. There are common questions for individuals and loved ones facing life-limiting illnesses that can help lead you toward the right choice.

Determining if a hospice is right for you may best be learned from calling different hospices and asking them about their services.

Is the hospice Medicare certified? Has the hospice been surveyed by a state or federal oversight agency in the last 5 years? (ask about surveys and deficiencies noted). Is the hospice accredited by a national organization?

September is Childhood Cancer Awareness Month.

CompassionCare Hospice knows this is the time to honor and remember the children and their families affected by these rare diseases. Cancer affects everyone involved. More children are being diagnosed with cancer today than ever before. Support goes a long way. Financial support can help research efforts which might help give these kids a better outcome. Treating children can be a bit complicated because children’s bodies and brains are growing quickly. Effectiveness of treatment and the advancement of technology offer hope to those diagnosed and their family. In the U.S, 15,780 children 18 or younger are diagnosed with cancer every year. And, approximately ¼ of those diagnosed will not survive the disease. The good news is the survivor rates are improving, but we can always improve. Knowledge is everything. Knowledge is how w

September is Childhood Cancer Awareness Month.

CompassionCare Hospice knows this is the time to honor and remember the children and their families affected by these rare diseases. Cancer affects everyone involved. More children are being diagnosed with cancer today than ever before. Support goes a long way. Financial support can help research efforts which might help give these kids a better outcome. Treating children can be a bit complicated because children’s bodies and brains are growing quickly. Effectiveness of treatment and the advancement of technology offer hope to those diagnosed and their family. In the U.S, 15,780 children 18 or younger are diagnosed with cancer every year. And, approximately ¼ of those diagnosed will not survive the disease. The good news is the survivor rates are improving, but we can always improve. Knowledge is everything. Knowledge is how w

According to statistics, Alzheimer’s is the 6th leading cause of death in the United States. More than 5 million Americans are living with this disease. Every 66 seconds, someone develops Alzheimer’s and these numbers will escalate rapidly in coming years. Unless something is done, in 2050, Alzheimer’s is projected to cost more than $1 trillion (in 2016 dollars). Costs to Medicare will increase 360 percent, this dramatic rise includes a nearly five-fold increase in government spending under Medicare and Medicaid and a nearly five-fold increase in out-of pocket spending. The walk to end Alzheimer’s starts with you.

We understand our patients values, preferences, and needs. Advanced hospice care planning and decision making is in place to ensure that the care you want to receive will be carried out upon you being unable to communicate your wishes.

What Advanced Hospice Care Planning Is Right For You?

While traditional medicine can treat some diseases, hospice attends, with compassion and respect, to the whole patient. It may be time to ask yourself- what care is right for you? With hospice, you’re in control and at CompassionCare we will create an individualized plan of care based on your wishes and needs. You will consult with your physician then decide what type of care you want to receive. Our team of professionals provide compassionate care to both you and your loved ones 24/7.

That compassionate care is provided to you in your home, wherever that may be. Contrary to belief, you can even leave hospice care and return later, if you choose. Hospice may be appropriate for those with any progressing, life-limiting illness such as: Alzheimer’s and Dementia, Stroke, ALS, Liver Disease, End-Stage Renal Disease, Heart Disease or Congestive Heart Failure just to name a

While the health benefits of music have long been known to positively affect one’s emotions, mood, and well-being, a multitude of new studies have confirmed that music therapy may be just the right “medicine” we need. Research shows that music is the first and last sensation we experience as human beings and could possibly help with things such as anxiety, pain, and sickness. Toward the end of one’s life, music can help bring peace and comfort.

In older adults with Alzheimer’s or dementia music therapy has been found to reduce aggressive or agitated behavior, reduce symptoms of dementia, improve mood, and improve cooperation. Music therapy may also decrease the risk of heart or brain diseases in elderly dementia patients and can be therapeutic in identifying and expressing emotions. Whether you can play an instrument, sing, or dance, hospice patients can truly

It is the most common genetic disease for children under the age 2. People diagnosed with SMA are deprived of physical strength by affecting the motor nerve cells in the spinal cord, taking away their ability to walk, eat, or even breathe. There is no cure for SMA. I out of 40 adults carry the gene for the disease. The only option for prevention is screening of to-be-parents. It being a recessive gene means both parents must at least carry the gene to pass it to the child. The gene can be easily masked. CompassionCare Hospice of Las Vegas, Nevada knows awareness is important. There are 4 primary types of Spinal Muscular Atrophy: type I, II, III, and IV. The types are broken down when the disease presents itself. SMA Type 1 presents itself at 6 months of age or younge

When we reach the end of our lives a peaceful ending is what we aim for, this can be achieved by preparing while we are still alive. We can’t always control what happens to us but we can prepare for the future the best we know how. The top concerns of the dying in the U.S. is that they do not want to be in pain or be alone and they would like to find “peace” (whatever that may mean to you). Hospice can help achieve all these things and more.

Each person’s dying experience is unique. No one can tell us what it will look like or when the time will come but hospice can provide guidance and support – not only to the patient but family and caregivers as well. With hospice, you’re in control…of your decisions, plans, wants and wishes. Hospice is centered on palliative care which allows each individual to remain as comfortable as possible so that a peaceful e

Each August the National Psoriasis Foundation (NPF) sponsors Psoriasis Awareness Month.

This month CompassionCare Hospice of Las Vegas, Nevada is dedicated to raising awareness, educating the public, and dispelling myths about the disease. Psoriasis is an autoimmune disease. It is a genetic disease triggered by environmental factors. Psoriasis are patches of red, itch, and scaly skin. It is not contagious. There is no cure for psoriasis, but there are treatments that can help control the disease. About 75 percent of cases can be controlled with topical, steroid creams alone. Psoriasis can affect anyone at any age. One of the more common types of psoriasis we see is plaque psoriasis. Plaque psoriasis accounts for 90 percent of the cases we see. Stress, the use of nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs, and winter are usual triggers for a flare up. Symptoms of psoriasis tend to worsen w

August is medic alert awareness month.

August’s MedicAlert Awareness Month was established by the MedicAlert Foundation to make consumers aware of the specific benefits of the MedicAlert product. A medical identification tag can be worn as a bracelet, a necklace, or on clothing. Not every medical identification tag gives you the benefits a MedicAlert identification tag gives you. Not only does it provide emergency responders, physicians, and law enforcement personnel the ability to identify an individual with a medical condition that may need immediate attention, but it allows one to never be alone. Medical alerts allow the wearer to be identified with a medical condition should that individual be unable to communicate. It is quite common to see medical alerts to identify diabetes, anaphylactic allergies, adrenal insufficiency, pacemaker or other medical devices, and/ or blood

Having a difficult conversation with someone about their end-of-life options is hard enough, adding a language barrier on top of that is even more problematic. Clear communication is key in these types of situations. Interpreters routinely help people who speak limited English — close to 9 percent of the U.S. population, and growing — understand what’s happening in the hospital. They become even more indispensable during patients’ dying days. But specialists say interpreters need extra training to capture the nuances of language around death according to an article on CaliforniaHealthline.org.

In particular with hospice, the word itself resonates differently among individuals, their families, and their culture. It’s important to know how to translate this information properly so that it is understood and